Entered CNET Catalog: 02/25/2004
SKU: 0027242645783
Manufacturer: Sony Electronics, Inc.
Manufacturer description
Build a better home theater with the DAV-FR9 DVD Dream System. Featuring 800 watts of total system power, a 5-disc slot loading DVD/SACD/CD changer, an S-Master Full Digital Amplifier, and both front and rear floor standing speakers, the DAV-FR9 is the ideal surround sound system for your home. It supports multiple playback formats, including CD-R/RW, Super Audio CD (Multi), MP3 and JPEG. It can also decode Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital EX, dts ES, dts, and Dolby Pro Logic II. And, even though it has high level functionality, the system is easy to set-up, thanks to color-coded speaker connections. Take your home entertainment up a serious notch with a DVD Dream System from Sony.CNET editors' review
- Editors' Choice: No
- Reviewed on: 11/22/2004
The four 43-inch-tall tower speakers, clad in an aluminum finish with gray grilles, are elegantly designed and largely responsible for the system's sleek appearance. They come with their bases already mounted, so for once we didn't have to exercise a screwdriver to get the speakers up and running. A 14-inch-wide matching center speaker completes the main speaker array, and the subwoofer's silver finish and sculptured front panel visually complement the receiver/changer and the towers. This 20.7-pound boomer measures 7.9 inches wide, 14.5 inches high, and 17.6 inches deep. The towers and the center speaker all feature the same 2.75-inch woofer and 1-inch tweeter, while the subwoofer has two 6.3-inch woofers.
Though the 106-page manual isn't quite as straightforward as we'd have liked, the setup chores aren't too arduous, and this is system is a bit easier to get up and running than the step-up DAV-FR10W, which duplicates all of the FR9's features but adds a pair of wireless tower surround speakers to the system.
The receiver/changer's digital amplifier delivers 114 watts per channel to each speaker and 115 watts to each of the subwoofer's two woofers. Surround processing runs the gamut from 5.1-channel Dolby Digital to Dolby Pro Logic II to DTS to, get this, Dolby EX and DTS ES 6.1-channel processing. We were surprised by the 6.1-decoding capabilities because the receiver has only five main amplifier channels. To take advantage of the 6.1 capabilities, you'll need to hook up a separate amplifier and speaker to the receiver/changer. Oh, and the five-disc changer plays Super Audio CDs (SACDs), MP3s and JPEGs. Unfortunately, basic amenities such as bass and treble controls or even a subwoofer-level control didn't make the cut.
Connectivity is limited to the standard set of video outputs (including progressive-scan component), one optical digital audio input, and two stereo analog inputs. That's a pretty skimpy selection for an $800 HTIB and barely adequate for small home theaters.
We were surprised that for a "lifestyle" system, the DAV-FR9 sounded as good as it did. The musical numbers on the Chicago DVD sounded fantastic, even when we nudged the volume up to seriously loud levels. The scene on the Gangs of New York DVD where the U.S. Navy fires cannon rounds at the street gangs was fearsomely presented with excellent surround ambiance. Sony's older Dream Systems never delivered this much power and clarity.
We auditioned the FR9's SACD sound with Aaron Copland's Rodeo and felt that the orchestra's string tone lacked warmth but that the music's dynamics and presence were pretty decent.
Our favorite jazz guitarist, Charlie Hunter, plays guitar and bass on one instrument. His new CD, Friends Seen and Unseen, is loaded with funky beats. The FR9's finely tuned sound delineated Hunter's every note, and the slender towers rendered Hunter's beefy sound surprisingly well. This system is equally accomplished with DVDs and CDs--a feat rarely achieved in HTIB-land.
While the DAV-FR9 uses the same subwoofer and towers as Sony's wireless DAV-FR10W Dream System, the FR9 has slightly better overall sound quality. So unless the wireless surround speakers are a big draw for you, save $200 and go for the FR9.
Editor's note: We have changed the rating in this review to reflect recent changes in our rating scale. Click here to find out more.
User opinions
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User Rating: 
4/10
Find something else to purchase.
Pros: Good Service from Sony. Nice looking design.
Cons: Sony Dream DVD players needs work.
User Rating: 
3/10
Sounds wonderfull, when it works
Pros: Great sound
Cons: 2 bad units
User Rating: 4/10
Hmmm... so, so...
Pros: Looks great with my Sony KLV32M1, great for movies
Cons: Not so great for music
But then again, I am a sound engineer so I may be a bit too much of an audiophile, in which case this unit should probably not be anywhere near my home
User Rating: 3/10
Whatever you do, BUY the Warranty!!
Pros: Looks great, easy hook-up
Cons: Unit no longer works- pricey to fix- bad customer support
Normally I'd just blame myself for not buying the extended warranty, but then I decided to do a little online research of not only the DAV FR9 but the other Dream Machine systems as well. I was actually surprised at the number of negative reviews and/or complaints I read from people who were having the identical problems as me (the blinking "Stand By", having to unplug every time you want to turn it off, unable to play or eject disks,etc...). It was almost like reading the same review over and over again. Yes, there were some very good reviews, but there were just as many (if not more) bad reviews. Some of these reviews were from this month and some dated back to 2004 so it seems that Sony is in no rush to fix this recurring defect. A repair tech/buddy told me that Sony sent out a service bulletin w/ specific instructions on how to repair the problem so obviously they are aware there is an issue. (I heard it has something to do with a faulty resistor but don't quote me on that).
From what I've read this system seems to have a 50/50 chance of either being great or a complete repair nigtmare. I wish I had found all this out before purchasing the DAV FR9 because I would have never bought it.
Anyway, just do your homework. If you do decide to buy the DAV FR9 or any of it's earlier versions, make sure to buy the EXTENDED WARRANTY. It probably won't keep the unit from malfunctioning but at least you'll save some $ fixing it.
User Rating: 
1/10
Sony "NIGHTMARE" system!!
Pros: Worked for about five months, then reciever stopped working entirely.
Cons: We waited for 10 MONTHS for two separate factory authorized service centers to try and fix it... both failed. The real failure, though, is with Sony's customer service.
User Rating: 3/10
What a POS system.
Pros: Stylish, easy to wire up. Truely HTIB.
Cons: Minimum connectivety. Small sound. Everything is automatic, minimal user adjustments.
The speaker wires were too short, but not to worry. There was a complete page in the manual on how to put new wire in the custom clips.
I did the auto setup and slipped a new Star Wars DVD into the player and got ready to be blown away. Instead, I spent a couple of hours re-reading the manual to make sure I hadn't messed something up. I had the volume set to MAX and you could carry on a quiet conversation in the same room.
I tried a music CD and found that the system did get louder, but in the DVD mode it went back to "whisper" mode. And, the adjustments were extremely minimal
So, I spent two hours trying to get the danged thing back in it's box, returned it to COSTCO and proceeded to go get a component system. No more HTIB for me.
User Rating: 
5/10
fair rating
Pros: sound clear
Cons: volume max out at 32 low volume
User Rating: 
9/10
GREAT Package
Pros: GREAT SOUND, great sony style, cd/dvd player plays just about anything in any format you can put on a disc, very reasonable price, did i say GREAT SOUND?
Cons: Slow changer, limited connectivity, reciever has LARGE foot-print (you'll need lots of shelf space)
User Rating: 9/10
Movies, Music, and Games...They All Sound Great!
Pros: Clear Crisp Audio, Mobile Speakers, Easy Setup;
Cons: Minimal Connectivity Options;
User Rating: 
10/10
Awsome Sound!
Pros: Easy setup, great looks, great sound.
Cons: Havent found any yet.
User Rating: 3/10
Looks like a benz, breaks down like a yugo.
Pros: Good features for $540
Cons: Reliability
User Rating: 10/10
Look no further. This Sony is truely a "Dream"
Pros: Easy setup, subperb sound, excellent value.
Cons: Lots of great controls on the remote. But Many Only Work with Sony TV.
Then I realized that my Samsung Surround Sound wasn't true Surround Sound. I needed a sound system that takes a fiber optic connection from my HD receiver. I wasn't excited about that. I went online to see what options I had, and ended up deciding to try this all-in-one system.
I went on e-bay and got an exceptional buy from an e-bay store.
The system is every bit as good as any component system as far as my ears can tell and there's no gaggle of controls to fiddle with to get the sound just perfect. It sounds perfect right out of the box.
A few months after purchase I inadvertantly left a DVD in the machine and moved it without taking care to keep it flat. When I went to retrieve the DVD the tray became jamed. I looked up the warranty instructions and returned the unit to Sony. A week later I received a complete new system. No questions. That easy.
I should take off a half point with those propriatory controls on the remote, but what the heck, if that's all I can find wrong . . .
Well, I had to move all my components cause my HiDef TIVO failed, and I moved my Sony DAV-FR9 with a DVD in it !! Door jammed and I couldn't get it to open. I gave it to Sony for repair and within one week I received a Brand New unit by UPS.
That's Service !!!
User Rating: 9/10
Easy set up, great sound
Pros: Slick design, plenty of speaker wire, easy set up
Cons: You need to pick up goodcomponent video cable, need a wide stand for it.
Speaker hook up was a piece of cake. One problem I had was the TV hook up, everything worked great playing DVDs but when I watched tv I had no sound so I picked up a professional componet video cable. This system is the perfect combo with our new Mitsubishi WD-62725.
If you have the standard DLP tv stand the DVD unit does not fit.
User Rating: 
7/10
nice look, good price
Pros: speaker stand
Cons: Subwoofer is powered by the unit, lows not low enough
User Rating: 1/10
Really sounds good!
Pros: Small size replaces separate components in a boohshelf system.
Cons: No Bass/Treble controls. Manual hard to use. Keeps referring you to different pages.Kept trying to find how adjust bass/treble til I found here, there is none.
User Rating: 9/10
Love this system
Pros: Great sound, ease of setup and use, very sleek and "sexy" look, deep rich sound, crisp and clear DVD picture.
Cons: No tonal controls.
User Rating: 
6/10
I would buy again.
Pros: Sound, options, reciever/amp/cd/dvd all one unit
Cons: Not enough options for connections input & output. Remote doesn't work my DVR.
User Rating: 10/10
Crisp clear sound
Pros: All four speakers are on a stand thus eliminating the mounting hassles. A tweakers dream - many different sound adjustments, enough to make a mono signal come to life. The slim style and front loading DVD make it very easy to use and conceal in a cabi- n
Cons: Slight delay when powering up.
